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TULSA Mar 4, 2020 (Thomson StreetEvents) -- Edited Transcript of Aaon Inc earnings conference call or presentation Thursday, February 27, 2020 at 9:15:00pm GMT

* Gary D. Fields

AAON, Inc. - President & Director

* Norman H. Asbjornson

AAON, Inc. - Founder, Chairman & CEO

* Rebecca A. Thompson

AAON, Inc. - CAO & Treasurer

* Scott M. Asbjornson

AAON, Inc. - VP of Finance & CFO

D.A. Davidson & Co., Research Division - Senior VP & Senior Research Analyst

* Charles L. Myers

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the AAON, Inc. Fourth Quarter full -- and Full Year Sales and Earnings for the Year Ended December 2019 Call. (Operator Instructions)

I would now like to turn the meeting over to Gary Fields. Please go ahead, sir.

Gary D. Fields, AAON, Inc. - President & Director [2]

Good afternoon. I'd like to read a forward-looking disclaimer to begin. To the extent any statement presented herein deals with information that is not historical, including the outlook for the remainder of the year, such statement is necessarily forward-looking and made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. As such, it is subject to the occurrence of many events outside AAON's control that could cause AAON's results to differ materially from those anticipated. Please see the risk factors contained in our most recent SEC filings, including the annual report on Form 10-K and the quarterly report on Form 10-Q.

Now I would like to introduce Scott Asbjornson, CFO, to discuss fourth quarter numbers.

Scott M. Asbjornson, AAON, Inc. - VP of Finance & CFO [3]

Welcome to our conference call. I'd like to begin by discussing the comparative results of the 3 months ended December 31, 2019, to December 31, 2018.

Net sales were up 9.1% to $122.6 million from $112.3 million. The increase in net sales was the result of improved production capacity and efficiencies. Gross profit increased 30.7% to $36.4 million from $27.8 million. As a percentage of sales, gross profit was 29.7% in the quarter just ended compared to 24.8% in 2018. The increase in gross profit was due to more efficient operations. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 22.3% to $13.1 million from $10.7 million in 2018. As a percentage of sales, SG&A was 10.7% of total sales in the quarter just ended compared to 9.5% in 2018. The increase in SG&A was primarily due to professional fees related to our new market tax credit transaction that closed in the fourth quarter of 2019.

Income from operations increased 35.6% to $23.2 million or 18.9% of sales from $17.1 million or 15.2% of sales. Our effective tax rate increased to 25.6% from 24.2%. Net income increased 33.2% to $17.3 million or 14.1% of sales from $13 million or 11.5% of sales. Diluted earnings per share increased by 32% and to $0.33 per share from $0.25 per share. Diluted earnings per share were based on 52,701,000 shares versus 52,421,000 shares in the same quarter a year ago.

The results of the year ended December 31, 2019, to December 31, 2018, net sales were up 8.2% to $469.3 million from $433.9 million. This increase in sales was due to our improved production capacity. Gross profit increased $15.9 million to $119.4 million from $103.5 million. As a percentage of sales, gross profit was 25.4% in the year just ended compared to 23.9% in 2018. The company maintained a steady level of workforce throughout 2019. Company continues to improve its labor and overhead efficiencies and expects improvements to continue as new sheet metal machines were placed into service in the last quarter of 2019 and in early 2020. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 8.1% to $52.1 million from $48.2 million in 2018. As a percentage of sales, SG&A remained constant at 11.1% of total sales. Income from operations increased 21.1% to $67 million or 14.3% of sales from $55.4 million or 12.8% of sales.

Our effective tax rate decreased to 19.9% from 23.7%. Upon completion of the company's 2018 tax return in 2019, the company recorded additional tax benefit due to higher-than-expected research and development credit of $0.6 million. Additionally, in 2019, the company determined it could take advantage of an additional 1% tax credit in Oklahoma for years in which the company's location was deemed to be within an enterprise zone. The additional Oklahoma credit, for being in an enterprise zone or otherwise allowable under Oklahoma law, resulted in a benefit of $1.2 million. Net income increased 26.9% to $53.7 million or 11.4% of sales from $42.3 million or 9.8% of sales. Diluted earnings per share increased by 27.5% to $1.02 per share from $0.80 per share. Diluted earnings per share were based on 52,635,000 shares versus 52,668,000 shares in the same period a year ago.

At this time, I will turn the call over to Rebecca Thompson, our Chief Accounting Officer, to discuss our balance sheet.

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Rebecca A. Thompson, AAON, Inc. - CAO & Treasurer [4]

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Thank you, Scott. Looking at the balance sheet, you'll see that we had a working capital balance of $131.5 million versus $93.2 million at December 31, 2018. Cash and restricted cash totaled $44.4 million at December 31, 2019. Our current ratio is approximately 3.3:1. Our capital expenditures for the year were $37.2 million. We expect capital expenditures for 2020 to be approximately $73.2 million. Shareholders' equity per diluted share is $5.51 at December 31, 2019, compared to $4.74 at December 31, 2018.

I'd now like to turn the call over to Gary Fields, our President.

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Gary D. Fields, AAON, Inc. - President & Director [5]

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Let's talk about the net sales. So we have had progressively price increases going back to 2017, but do it with the longer lead time, the backlog flow through to actual production and actual sales takes a fair while to happen. We've been working that backlog down, working our -- by increasing the production rate and so we're shortening our lead times. This will get the price increases through to the sales a little quicker. So right now, the price increases have had a positive impact on our financial performance. But more importantly, the efficiencies we've gained with the higher revenue, being able to dilute a lot of the fixed expenses, has been very beneficial. We're getting better labor efficiencies as well.

In Q4, about 53% of what we built was on our latest pricing. So that leaves about 47% to be built at the older pricing in Q4. So going forward, we're thinking that Q1 will be built predominantly on the June '19 price increase, which was 5%. And so you can do the ratio and math there and see that there was still some accretion to the gross margin available due to that price increase, somewhat offset by the 2020 wage increases. So it won't be absolutely accretive, but it will be somewhat accretive. The water source heat pumps, 2019, we had revenue of $25 million. That is versus $14 million in 2018. So '18 was double '17's revenue. '19 is up considerably again. '20, we think that, that slope will be a little shallower than it was '19 versus '18, but we're looking at a very solid business going forward with the heat pumps.

We've been working on updating a lot of our products and improving them because there is technology improvements in components and strategies. Our Norman Asbjornson Innovation Center is nearly fully utilized right now. We only have one chamber that is not totally usable. And this has allowed us to accelerate our development of new products. We received multiple awards throughout 2019 for introducing these industry-leading strategies and industry-leading efficiencies. Replacement market versus the new market still remains relatively constant for us on an annual basis of about 50% each. In Q1, we booked a fair amount of orders for replacement market, more percentage than we do new construction in Q1. That's preparing for primarily the school season where we're doing a lot of change out of units in schools.

The markets that we're participating in have remained very consistent over the last 3, maybe 4 quarters. So I don't see any particular market accelerating versus any others. The current scenario with markets is it looks like that going forward, manufacturing is doing quite well. I think we can thank the current administration for incentivizing manufacturers to be in North America -- in the United States. And we're seeing a direct result of that with people either improving the HVAC equipment on existing manufacturing plants that might have been mothballed at one time but are now being repurposed or in new manufacturing.

So let's talk about the backlog. December 31, '19, it was $142.7 million versus $151.8 million a year ago. So we decreased it 6%. While at the same time, we increased our production rate. So at this point in time, we have generated production capacity that's equal to or slightly greater than our booking capacity. We have additional sheet metal manufacturing capacity coming online as we speak. And we're also seeing bookings strengthen a bit over what they were due to our reduced lead times. So I think it will be a seesaw battle throughout 2020 to stay up with the bookings as they become more prevalent in light of the shorter lead times that we've been able to publish for people.

We're building a new 220,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Longview, Texas that supplements our existing 234,000 square foot facility there. So you can see it's nearly doubling the footprint. One of the benefits of that is there's -- about 77,000 square foot of that building will be utilized for relocating our inventory of coils that we manufacture in Longview to be used in Tulsa product. So that 77,000 square foot will be freed up in Tulsa to allow us to install some additional sheet metal manufacturing equipment here in Tulsa and delay the need for us to build a building here in Tulsa.

So now I would like to -- Norman, would you like to have any comments?

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Norman H. Asbjornson, AAON, Inc. - Founder, Chairman & CEO [6]

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Yes. Thank you. Glad to say hello to all of you again. We have traveled through a great deal of change in management of the company over the past 3 years since Gary came onboard. I've been here to help at the level I am, but all the people who I asked to stay around, a lot of the ones I asked to stay around until Gary came onboard so he would be given the freedom of choosing his replacements, have left. So we've had quite a large turnover of managerial personnel, which has caused us some problems for the past couple of years.

Those days are behind us. The new managers, all of whom came out of the existing personnel within our company, we did not have to go outside to get these managers, are coming up to the level of efficiency that we have historically had. We've had a very high degree of efficiency. And we're on the road back to it now. And I think, in my mind, I'm not going to be so much a part of it anymore, that they have the abilities to exceed the degree of efficiencies, which we -- had occurred prior to this beginning of changeover of management.

Along the way, we've dropped the average age of this management by some 20, some to 30 years. So we're not going to be looking at another change necessitated by aging out of the management. And the company has got a lot of talent in the age groups in the 30s and the early 40s now running the company, and you can see the kind of performance they're giving. I fully expect this to increase and the company to move forward at least in the rate we have historically moved forward in both profitability and revenue and then a very good chance that both of them will accelerate even more. So we're feeling very positive about the future of AAON.

And I'd like to thank all of you who have supported me during the 33 years that I was building this company to what it is. It was time I turn it over to Gary and the new management. Thank you, and hope to listen in on a couple more calls.

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Gary D. Fields, AAON, Inc. - President & Director [7]

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Do we have any questions?

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Questions and Answers

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Operator [1]

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(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from the line of Brent Thielman of D.A. Davidson.

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Brent Edward Thielman, D.A. Davidson & Co., Research Division - Senior VP & Senior Research Analyst [2]

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I guess maybe just starting -- maybe just around the question of supply disruptions, there's been a little bit of that in the news here lately. Update us on what you're seeing. I -- if I remember right, you're waiting on a few more sheet metal machines to come in the new year to support some of that capacity in the factory, I guess, any disruptions you're seeing there? Is everything on schedule?

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Gary D. Fields, AAON, Inc. - President & Director [3]

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So far, everything is on schedule. We've been receiving roughly 1 new machine a month for several months now. Four of those machines we have in operation, 4 of those machines are yet to be put in operation. So they'll provide us additional capacity. One of those machines should go full capacity tonight or tomorrow, 2 machines next Friday and 1 machine following in about 30 days. Those are machines that are on premises. We will be receiving another machine that's already being unloaded at the port right now that will be here next week or the following week. So the machines that we have now have us running at a production rate that's relatively in line with our bookings rate. So these other 4 machines as they can't come on will afford us additional capacity and allow bookings to increase without increasing lead time. So I think that we've got this in pretty good alignment to stay pace, production capacity increases with bookings increases and that will be the challenge that we'll see. But I don't see any interruptions at this point in time for any of the needed machines coming in.

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Brent Edward Thielman, D.A. Davidson & Co., Research Division - Senior VP & Senior Research Analyst [4]

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Okay. That's good to hear. And I guess, Gary, just to kind of sum that up, as these new machines come in by the third quarter, you'll expect all of that capacity to be ready to support that increase in bookings?

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Gary D. Fields, AAON, Inc. - President & Director [5]

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The machines that we have now -- essentially, we're getting 1 machine per month through the end of the year. We have 8 more machines to come. And so those 8 more machines are coming approximately 1 per month. So I don't expect to get the last machine until, I think, late September, and it takes about 45 days to put those into beneficial use. So I've actually got a milestone that's dated 12/15/20. And of those 8 machines to come, one of them is being unloaded at the port right now, and 2 of them are on the water coming over. So there could be some delay in 5 -- one of those 5 machines that we've not been notified of. But I think it would be a pretty minor delay from anything that we've seen. And the other thing is, is those other machines that are not yet on the water coming over here, those are force capacity increases that we anticipate needing in mid- to late '21. I don't think any of the machines that we're depending on to meet capacity demands in 2020 are jeopardized at all.

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Brent Edward Thielman, D.A. Davidson & Co., Research Division - Senior VP & Senior Research Analyst [6]

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Okay. Okay. And it looks like good water source heat pump sales for the year. I guess, as I was backing into it, am I right that -- were sales and revenue dollars down in 4Q?

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Gary D. Fields, AAON, Inc. - President & Director [7]

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On the water source heat pump?

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Brent Edward Thielman, D.A. Davidson & Co., Research Division - Senior VP & Senior Research Analyst [8]

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Yes.

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Gary D. Fields, AAON, Inc. - President & Director [9]

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For Q4...

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Rebecca A. Thompson, AAON, Inc. - CAO & Treasurer [10]

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Fourth quarter...

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Gary D. Fields, AAON, Inc. - President & Director [11]

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I don't have it broken out that way right here. It looks like it could have been just slightly off, but I don't think it was anything material that I recall. So I'm not sure exactly how you're discerning that to make that assumption.

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Brent Edward Thielman, D.A. Davidson & Co., Research Division - Senior VP & Senior Research Analyst [12]

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Just backing out what I saw in the 10-K, the prior 2 quarters. I guess what I was really getting to is I was just wondering, given that has been a little bit of a drain on the gross margin, whether that helped a bit here in the quarter since you didn't know...

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Edited Transcript of AAON earnings conference call or presentation 27-Feb-20 9:15pm GMT - Yahoo Finance

In aFleet Ownerarticlelooking towards the next decade, it was said that numerous freight transportation experts suggested there is likely to be more advancements during the next 10 year than in the past five decades combined.

In that article, Daimler Trucks North Americas Roger Nielsen said, you cant bring fuel efficiency changes every day.

I am sure Nielsen was talking from a manufacturing point of view. But the same can be said from a technology adoption point of view. In our Annual Fleet Fuel Study we look at fleet adoption of 85 different technologies and practices. Sometimes you do see huge increases in the adoption rate of a specific technology from one year to the next.

For example, in the 2019 study we saw a 1,389% increase in the adoption rate of tractor gap reducers and a 126% increase in the use of solar panels from 2017 to 2018. And after years of slow growth in automated technologies, they moved from 25 to 70% in just three years! But what is more normal is a slower adoption over a period of years.

This is due in part because the vast diversity of needs in the industry can make the adoption of a specific fuel-saving technology slow, as it might not be suited for all applications. Also, fleets have multiple demands and challenges including access to capital, levels of risk tolerance, whether they buy or lease their vehicles, whether they have company drivers or use independent contractors, whether they do their own maintenance or outsource it. The list goes on and on. And, of course, there is the fact that trucks have different duty cycles and operate in different geographic locations. Wow, the many challenges when deciding what and when to buy.

What weve learned from years of conducting the Fleet Fuel Study is that technologies take a long time to scale from small deployment projects to use by innovative fleets and early adopters to late adopters and laggards. At that point the new product has reached a saturation point and most fleets are receiving value from it. Think trailer skirts and down sped powertrains.

One other thing we learned from the Fleet Fuel Studies is that current diesel fuel prices are not the only motivating factor in a fleets decision to invest in fuel-saving technology. They also look at things like regulations and sustainability. More on that in a future blog.

I suspect that no matter what the technology, we will continue to see adoption rates follow the normal pattern weve seen for a variety of other technologies over the years.

See original here:
What to look for in a procure-to-pay solution - Fleet Owner

By: TruBlue Total House Care | 0Shares 5Reads

YORKTOWN, VA. (PRWEB) March 02, 2020 - TruBlue Total House Care, the national franchise focused on full-service home maintenance, is pleased to announce that Tim and Kay Diemont, the local owners and operators of TruBlue of Yorktown, have been recognized as the companys Franchisees of the Year. The award was presented at the companys national conference on February 4, 2020. This is the second consecutive year the Diemonts have earned this award.

Tim and Kay are not only smart business owners, but also amazing people. In addition to their work locally with TruBlue, they are active in the franchise system talking to potential franchisees, participating in training and even helping us to develop new systems and they give back to their community. They are a powerful team and Im looking forward to watching them continue to grow TruBlue of Yorktown, TruBlue President Sean Fitzgerald said.

TruBlue is a full-service company that offers both bundled and unbundled services. Clients looking for dependable, high-quality, individual services can hire TruBlue for just basic help around the home, handyman repairs, cleaning services, emergency repairs, landscaping, seasonal services and minor home renovations. For clients looking for total house care solutions especially seniors and busy families who want the comfort and convenience of owning a home without worrying about the maintenance hassles TruBlue offers a House Care Plus monthly maintenance program. TruBlue also works with homeowners, realtors and rental property owners who need to get homes move-in ready quickly and keep them maintained as well as business clients.

It was a nice surprise to be chosen as the Franchisee of the Year again this year. We are about to celebrate our seventh anniversary with TruBlue and we were able to take our head of maid services, Joan, who has been with us since day one, to join us on the stage. We appreciate the support of our community and our hard-working team, who make the work we do possible, Kay said.

Tim and Kay opened TruBlue of Yorktown in the March of 2013 and theyve been able to grow the business by about 25 percent each year since they opened. In addition to working with residents and property owners, the Diemonts also work with military housing departments, senior apartment complexes and apartment buildings. They currently have about 20 employees and they serve Yorktown, Poquoson, Newport News and properties on the Peninsula.

We feel very fortunate to have been able to make a positive impact on our community by serving the senior and veteran populations here in our area as well as the busy adults who dont have time to take care of everything and want their spare time back. Owning a TruBlue has not only given us the opportunity to service our community but also to live a lifestyle that makes us happy. When you own your own business, you are in charge of your own destiny and as Tim always says, It truly is the American Dream, Kay said.

TruBlue of Yorktown is bonded and insured. To learn more about TruBlue of Yorktown, call 757-243-1297, email TDiemont@TruBlueHouseCare.com or visit https://www.TruBlueYorktown.com.

Kellie MayKellie May PR513-379-3185

SOURCE TruBlue

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Tim and Kay Diemont Earn TruBlue Total House Care's Franchisee of the Year Award for a Second Year in a Row - Franchising.com

A popular restaurant will be returning to its former location in 2020!

According to the Cedar Rapids Gazette, a new Maid-Rite will be opening at 1000Seventh Ave.in Marion at the end of the year. The Gazette reports:

"The restaurant is being brought back by co-franchise ownersJoe Hill, ofSan Diego, Calif., andJamie Hoth, owner ofSelect Construction Inc.in Marion, after its doors closed three years ago."

The new owners originally had plans to open a new restaurant at the location, but eventually decided to bring back the Marion favorite. The former ownerEllie Osborn Riley closed the restaurant back in January of 2017 after 31 years in business, but not because it was strugglingto get customers. She was just looking for a change. Joe Hill spoke to Ellie and her daughters Teri Entas and Nicole Ashby about his plans and says they have been very supportive and given their blessing.

Althoughthe restaurant isstillunder the Maid-Rite umbrella and is going to be located in the same building, there are going to be some changes. First of all,it'sgoing to be gettinga new name.We spoketo co-owner Jamie Hoth this morning, who revealed to us that the Marion Maid-Rite will become the City Square Maid-Rite. The restaurant and restrooms will also become ADA compliant. In addition to those changes, the building will be getting a total makeover, with a potential banquet room and arcade on the first floor. Here's an idea of what it will look like, courtesy of Martin Gardner Architecture:

As far as the food goes, the recipes will stay the same, with the addition of breakfast.The menuwill includeMaid-Rite sandwiches, tenderloins, onion rings, pasta, soup, ice cream, and otherdesserts. Joe and Jamie hope to have the restaurant open in December of this year.

To read more on the new City Square Maid-Rite coming to Marion, check out the Gazette article HERE.

Visit link:
The Marion Maid-Rite Will Reopen Later This Year - khak.com

Leila Bell, an 85-year-old great grandmother in Vancouver, decided the circumstances of her death warranted one last act of advocacy.

She told a handful of close friends, her psychologist and her doctor about her plan. Her long-time confidante Sarah Townsend made the arrangements.

On 22 August 2019, six days before the day Bell was scheduled to die, a freelance photojournalist and an interviewer met Bell at Townsends home. Bell sat in an armchair in the living room, wearing scarlet lipstick and freshly styled hair for the camera, and, looking straight ahead, described her plight.

She wanted to live longer, she could live longer, but she had to die now. Otherwise, she risked losing her chance to die with dignity. In order to meet the Canadian regulations for medical assistance in dying, known as Maid, Bell had to die before she became any sicker.

This, she believed, was wrong, as she explained on camera. This is my last activist ... she said into the camera and paused, searching for the perfect word. She smiled when it came to her. Offering.

Bell had been diagnosed with early-stage Alzheimers disease 16 months earlier. She had watched her mother die from the same disease decades before. Near the end, her mother couldnt recognize a table, chairs or her own daughter, Bell recalled. During those visits, Bell told herself that she did not want her family and friends to endure the stress of caring for her if she ever developed Alzheimers.

I remember how awful it was to see the deterioration of this woman who lost everything, every part of her ultimately except her shell, she said.

Bell first noticed something amiss when she was 82 years old. Shed lose her line of thought while reading, and reading was one of my, since childhood, my favourite things to do, she said. She was taking university courses in writing and philosophy at the time, and dropped them because she couldnt concentrate.

She saw a doctor who gave her the diagnosis: Alzheimers disease, early stage.

Bell, who lived alone, saw herself changing in the months after her diagnosis. She got physically lost going shopping and mentally lost during conversations. She grew frustrated when she could not find the perfect word or figure out her way through a problem.

Solving problems was her job: shed been a lifelong activist who had advocated for breaking down barriers to women in the workplace since the 1970s. I never marched or burned my bra, she said, but my concern about the status of women in society was a very key one. I tried everything I could to have an impact on that. She marched in gay pride parades long before most politicians dared to, dyeing her hair purple in support of the LGBTQ+ community.

A single mother of three, Bell put herself through university at night while working full-time. She went to become a high-ranking civil servant, overseeing more than 700 employees in the provinces health commission. After retiring, she was wooed back to work for a year, a job she did partly pro bono, to help a not-for-profit organization that supports women and at-risk pregnant teens.

Other people might be more easygoing about fumbling for the right word but Bell was not, she said. She was becoming uncharacteristically emotional and found herself weeping in public. This is thwarting me one loss piles on top of another loss, and until it gets to the point where, being a human being of my nature and type, theres scarcely anything left in it, she said. I dont know how best to explain that.

She recognized that her disease was worsening and, in May 2019, she made the choice to apply for an assisted death before she lost her independence.

The problem, as she saw it, is that Canadas Maid law currently only covers people who have the capacity to give informed consent on the day of their death, so a person with advanced Alzheimers is unlikely to qualify. Whats more, it is impossible with a disease like Alzheimers to predict when a person will lose their capacity to consent. The rate of change can be unpredictable often, an event like a fall or an infection can suddenly speed up decline.

Perhaps if I had another illness, I might know [when] I was going to die. So I might be told by a doctor, you have another two months, three months, six months. I cant be told that, Bell said.

She weighed the decision privately before she set a date. She feared making the wrong choice of waiting too long and missing out on the chance to have medical help in dying, or dying too early and missing out on time with those she loved, including her grandchildren and great-granddaughter.

In the video, Bell is razor-sharp, logical and unemotional. She speaks in sentences of complex structure contrary to the commonly held stereotype of a person with Alzheimers. When she laughs, she throws her head back with delight. But for most of the two hours, she delivers her message with sobriety, arguing that the more than 500,000 Canadians with Alzheimers and other dementias should be able to make advanced requests for medical assistance in dying.

If I had been able to do an advanced request, I would not have had to decide to make that decision to die now, said Bell. I have been forced to decide now because I fear that at some future time, I will not be able to request it due to the compromise in my brain being much more severe.

You can hear her explain how sure she was:

In 2016, the Canadian government passed a law allowing medical assistance in dying. Nurse practitioners or physicians can assess a persons eligibility for Maid and carry out the procedure, and it is covered by the countrys publicly funded health system.

But there are restrictions. To be eligible, a person must meet certain criteria: they must be candidates for health services funded by a government within Canada; they must be at least 18 years old and capable of making decisions about their health. They must have a grievous and irremediable medical condition. The request must be voluntary, and the person requesting it must be informed of all the means available to relieve their suffering, including palliative care.

And, finally, they must give informed consent at least twice: first, on the day they are assessed for eligibility and again, after a minimum 10-day waiting period, on the day they receive Maid. To give informed consent, a person must have capacity a medical concept demonstrated by skills involving memory, judgment and decision-making.

Many supporters of Maid in Canada feel the law is too restrictive. They want to see an end to the requirement for informed consent on the day of death. They want the law changed so a person could make an advanced request for Maid a modification called Audreys Amendment, named for Audrey Parker, a Halifax woman who opted to die earlier than she planned because she worried her cognition was beginning to falter, as a result of her incurable cancer.

In cases like Leilas and Audreys, and a number of other cases across the country that we know about, people are fearful that they will lose capacity and therefore they get medical assistance in dying early, said Jim Cowan, a retired Canadian senator and board member for Dying With Dignity Canada.

Since Canadas Maid law came into effect in June 2016, more than 13,000 Canadians have chosen to die peacefully with the help of a physician or nurse practitioner. It is unknown how many more people were assessed and approved but lost capacity before the procedure was performed, said Cowan. They continue to suffer intolerably, which is bizarre.

Last month, the Trudeau government introduced a bill to make amendments to the legislation, following a public consultation in which more than 300,000 Canadians participated. If passed, the bill would allow advanced waivers for people who are nearing the end of their lives meaning, under certain conditions, they would not need to give final and informed consent for an assisted death on the day they died. This would achieve Audrey Parkers dream.

But the amendments would not achieve Bells wishes. She hoped that people with dementias would be able to write advanced directives setting out the conditions that would trigger their medically assisted death.

Bell wanted to wait until she met the criteria for mid-stage Alzheimers.

Leila wanted to be able to set out a condition in advance, not a date, said Townsend.

A parliamentary review of Maid is scheduled to begin by June and will consider further amendments to assisted dying in Canada, including eligibility for people with conditions like dementias that could affect their decision-making capacity at some point in the future.

Dr Jennifer Gibson, director of the University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics, called for more discussion about advanced requests in the context of dementia, but she was happy with the direction Canada was moving.

Were going to need the runway of some time to think about ... how we might be responsive to the interests of persons with dementia who want, like the rest of us without dementia, to be the author of the ends of their own lives, she said.

Informed consent can be difficult for someone struggling with a terminal illness. Cancers tend to follow a general trajectory the body declines but the mind remains sharp until closer to the end. A person with cancer is an alert witness to their changing body, able to track their own degeneration and make informed decisions about their medical care until closer to the end.

Their capacity can deteriorate, and quickly. A combination of disease and medication can wreak havoc with their thought patterns. This is not uncommon in the advanced stages of cancer: patients become drowsy and confused. They forget where they are and what is happening. Even if they have already been approved for Maid, they may be unable to engage with a physician on the day of their planned death to affirm, with certainty, that they understand the stakes, to say this is how and when they choose to end their life.

It is different for a person with any type of dementia, including Alzheimers. Someone with Alzheimers loses their cognitive function progressively, often over years. Their ability to give informed consent can disappear long before their body nears its natural death.

Its that long period of uncertainty, of living without capacity, that Leila Bell feared.

For 40 years, Bell supported the right to die with dignity. She longed for assisted dying in Canada before it was legal, as she watched some of the people closest to her die. In 1991, her second husband, Clare, to whom shed been married for nearly 20 years, died from complications following a heart attack. Leila fell into deep depression and moved in with her best friend, who later died from diabetes. In 2002, Bells 49-year-old daughter, Anne, developed an unusual gastrointestinal condition and died, after being cared for by her mother.

I always felt people should have the choice of an assisted death, Bell said. We have our own lives to live and we have a right to live those lives in the way we want to as long as were not hurting anybody else.

When it was time, Bell sought out Dr Ellen Wiebe, a well-known supporter and practitioner of Maid in Vancouver. Wiebe was the first physician in Canada to perform Maid outside of Quebec. After several appointments, Wiebe told Bell that she was eligible for an assisted death but shed have to die earlier than she would naturally. Wiebe could see Bells capacity deteriorating. She was at risk within a relatively short time of losing capacity, said Wiebe.

Bell chose a date in late August. She wanted to squeeze in as much time with her family as she could before she died. In June, she flew her two grandchildren to Vancouver. She sat them down and handed them a letter shed written, explaining her diagnosis and her decision. She wrote that she did not want them to remember her like she remembered her mother in the last stages of Alzheimers. They pushed back; they said they didnt see any change in her. They held her letter up as an example of her high level of functioning.

Her granddaughter Erin Spence, who has one daughter and is now pregnant with a second child, told her grandmother that she wanted her children to know their great grandmother. She and her brother were not opposed to assisted dying but they could not wrap their minds around the immediacy of her decision.

We just felt like, Why do you do have this now? said Spence. I didnt notice any difference in her, to be perfectly honest. I really didnt.

But eventually, Spence and her brother understood that she had no other choice.

Bell explains how those conversations were difficult for both parties:

Bell said she never wavered after her decision, but came up with the idea of recording a video to lobby for change. She paid for the recording of the video and bequeathed it to Dying With Dignity Canada via Townsend.

Leila was extraordinary: independent, stubborn, persistent, an activist, said Townsend. But a good death should be available to each ordinary one of us. One shouldnt have to be extraordinary or lucky to have a good death.

Bell organized a party with her friends four days before she died and a quiet family dinner the night before. She died on 28 August 2019, surrounded by her daughter and her daughters partner, Townsend and her partner, and her grandchildren and their spouses.

Before she died, Bell thanked everyone in the room for surrounding her with love, like a warm blanket.

Then, she smiled and winked, and died a few minutes later.

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When assisted dying means you have to go before you're ready - The Guardian

Part of an occasional series answering readers questions about Maine.

Why is Portlands airport called a jetport and why is it known by the letters PWM?

Its a name that recalls The Jetsons, the jazzy 1960s animated TV show about an outer-space family with a talking dog and a beeping robot maid.

Named more than 50 years ago, Portland International Jetport might sound a bit cute today, when most other flight facilities are called airports.

The name has proven durable, however, surviving a short-lived, politically controversial change in 1982, and it hasnt stymied growth any. The jetport underwent a series of major expansions through the early 2000s and served a record-breaking 2.18 million passengers last year, with seasonal flights to Minneapolis, Dallas and Denver starting in June.

Plus, the name helps to set the jetport apart from Portland International Airport in Portland, Oregon.

If you say jetport, people know youre talking about Portland, Maine, said jetport Director Paul Bradbury.

But the jetport clearly has some name-related issues, and they go beyond the use of the word jetport. Why is international in the name if it offers no direct foreign flights? And why are its code letters PWM?

The last question is easiest to answer.

PWM is the jetports geocode with the International Air Transportation Association. Three-letter airport codes were developed in the 1930s as a way for pilots to identify landing locations.

Back then it was the Portland Municipal Airport and the last beacon of its lighted airway was located in Westbrook, 10 miles to the west. So, PWM stands for Portland Westbrook Municipal, Bradbury said.

Internationally, its known as KPWM, because the association recently added K to the geocodes of all U.S. airports.

But the Westbrook beacon is long gone, and no part of the 769-acre airport is actually in Westbrook. In fact, the southern half is in South Portland. To clear up any confusion, would it be possible to change the jetports geocode?

Not a chance, Bradbury said, because any change could cause international confusion and most, if not all, letter combinations have now been taken. PME, for instance, is Portsmouth, England, and POR is Pori, Finland. Portland, Oregon, is PDX.

The letters dont necessarily mean anything, Bradbury said, though he acknowledged that airlines now use them on tickets and flight listings, and PWM is incorporated into the jetports logo.

It has become a branding aspect for most airports, Bradbury said. Its how many people search for tickets online.

But not every airport is lucky enough to have recognizable call letters like JFK, ATL and LAX, Bradbury said.

Chicagos OHare International Airport is ORD because it was built in and initially named after a former farming village known as Orchard Place. Orlando International Airport is MCO because it used to be McCoy Air Force Base.

Portland Municipal Airport was renamed Portland International Jetport in April 1969, following a major runway expansion project and the opening of a new terminal building in 1968.

A news brief in the Maine Sunday Telegram didnt make much of the change, reporting that Stephen Schmitt, the citys director of aviation and public buildings, had revealed the new name on Saturday, April 26, 1969.

For many years, Schmitt said, customs and immigration services have been available at the airport, so the designation of international will highlight to the aviation public that these services are available.

The name change also reflected the citys desire to promote the idea that the airport now served jet planes. Maine Joins The Jet Age was the headline on an opinion column written in June 1968 by Richard Jones, district sales manager of the newly formed Northeast Airlines.

The opening of the new terminal building at Portland Municipal Airport, following soon after the completion of the runway extensions which permitted us to start the long-awaited DC-9 jet service here will thrust Greater Portland firmly into the jet age, Jones wrote.

While Portland wasnt alone in having a jetport, other cities have since renamed their airfields from jetports to airports,such as Millington-Memphis Airport in Tennessee. Today, PWM is one of few jetports remaining in the United States, including one in Jacksonville, Florida, and four in North Carolina.

As for the jetports international standing, Bradbury acknowledged that past attempts to establish service to Canada and other foreign places have failed. However, he said, the jetport serves nearly 100,000 passengers annually on domestic flights connecting to international destinations, including Cancun, Toronto, Tokyo and London.

Bradbury, an engineer who has worked at the jetport for 28 years, said he knew of no recent attempts to change the jetports name. The last major effort went so badly.

The Portland City Council changed the name to Edmund S. Muskie International Airport on Feb. 1, 1982. The former U.S. senator from Maine, a Democrat, had recently retired from his post as U.S. secretary of state under President Jimmy Carter.

The political blowback was so intense, the council rescinded the name change before the end of the month, at Muskies urging.

To my utter dismay, I now find my name caught up in an unpleasant controversy which has converted a gesture of goodwill into an empty honor, Muskie wrote to the council. I suppose I have been involved in politics long enough to have anticipated such a result. In any case, I want no part of it.

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Why is Portland's airport called a jetport and known by the letters PWM? - Lewiston Sun Journal

Now that the federal government has tabled proposed amendments to the law governing medical assistance in dying (MAiD), its imperative that the laws severe restrictions be lifted so that personal autonomy is respected. The law has forced disabled Canadians seeking MAiD either to attempt to take their own lives or suffer indefinitely.

The amendments in Bill C-7, An Act to Amend the Criminal Code (medical assistance in dying), propose a two-criteria system one for Canadians and the other for Canadians whose death is reasonably foreseeable.

We need to make sure the proposed amendments, tabled in Parliament on February 24, 2020, go far enough to fully correct the legislation, which the courts have struck down as unconstitutional.

Bill C-7 is the federal governments response to the Quebec Superior Court ruling in Truchon v. Attorney General of Canada, which said the requirement of a reasonably foreseeable death to be eligible for MAiD was discriminatory.

Bill C-14, which has come to be known as the MAiD law, has been widely criticized by civil liberties organizations and the Canadian Bar Association. They have urged the government to correct its unconstitutionality. In the legal community in Canada, there is agreement on this: the legislation is unconstitutional.

The unconstitutionality comes down to the 2015 Carter v. Canada Supreme Court case ruling, which does not stipulate that your death has to be reasonably foreseeable. The Carter v. Canada ruling was based on intolerable and irremediable suffering, not proximity to death. Kay Carter was an 89-year-old woman with degenerative spinal stenosis; she lived in a wheelchair as her body gradually collapsed on itself. The court found that being allowed to suffer indefinitely and kept alive against her will was unconstitutional. Reasonably foreseeable death is found nowhere in the decision.

Yet, the government went on to craft a law that has restricted medical assistance in dying to those applicants with a reasonably foreseeable death, a term that is vague and legally undefined. The family of Kay Carter has questioned whether she would have even qualified for MAiD under the current law.

The MAiD law is anything but fair, equitable legislation. Even Justice Minister David Lametti, who was an MP in 2016, voted against the MAiD bill that year, saying: As a professor of law in Canada for 20 years and a member of two Canadian Bars, I also worry about passing legislation that is at serious risk of being found to be unconstitutional. On these grounds, I was not able to give it my vote in good conscience.

What are the proposed changes?

Among the most notable changes tabled this week in Bill C-7:

For Canadians seeking MAiD where death isnt reasonably foreseeable, additional criteria must be met:

The government also wants to allow what it calls a waiver of final consent. This has been referred to by some as Audreys amendment. It would allow for an advanced directive only when natural death is reasonably foreseeable and the following criteria are met:

A person can give consent in writing to receive MAiD on a scheduled day, even if they are no longer able to consent. This waives the requirement that consent be expressed immediately before the MAiD procedure. If on the day of the MAiD procedure the person has lost capacity to consent to MAiD, the practitioner can provide MAiD using the written directive or waiver of final consent. Any consent given in advance would be able to be invalidated by the person demonstrating with words or gestures a refusal or resistance to the administration of MAiD at the time of the procedure.

Caution must be exercised

These amendments could set the table for further court challenges. If the government continues to restrict access that does not respect the rights outlined by the Charter (sections 7 and 15(1)), further cases are likely.

Section 7 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms states, Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.

To prohibit access to assisted dying for any group limits their right to life, liberty, and security, when the result of prohibition is that some individuals are compelled to take their life prematurely, as Jocelyn Downie explained in the Carter v. Canada case.

Furthermore, it denies people the liberty to make decisions about their own health and medical care and bodily integrity. Allowing a Canadian to suffer intolerably also impinges on the security of the person.

Section 15(1) states, Every individual is equal before and under the law and has the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination and, in particular, without discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, age or mental or physical disability.

If medical assistance in dying is limited to select categories of the population, the government is denying equal access and thereby the right to equal benefit of the law. Both sections 7 and 15(1) have been used in court cases to reinforce equal access to MAiD.

As MPs begin to debate the proposed amendments, lets hope for less of the paternalism that infused the initial legislation. That legislation was passed by many of the MPs who will be voting this time. The individual must have autonomy over a life after a diagnosis and a decision about their death.

Safeguards for disabled Canadians

There is a worry among disability rights organizations that an expanded MAiD could erode disability supports and lead people to encourage death over life for disabled Canadians. They fear the message a more expansive MAiD could send to disabled persons, as Catherine Frazee, former chief commissioner of the Ontario Human Rights Commission, has said.

However, equal, fair access to MAiD would empower disabled Canadians, giving them the same autonomy that others have in making their own choice on assisted dying. Disabled Canadians have not been given the right to make their own choice about MAiD because of so-called safeguards that restrict it to those with reasonably foreseeable deaths.

Disabled Canadians have successfully defended their Charter-given rights in some of our nations highest courts. From Carter v. Canada in 2015 to Truchon v. Attorney General of Canada, Lamb v. Canada, and A.B. v. Ontario (Attorney General), the plaintiffs were disabled Canadians. We would not have medical assistance in dying in this country without the efforts and courage of disabled Canadians. Its about time they have the full rights they have demanded.

The current legislation has excluded disabled Canadians from having the autonomy that Carter v. Canada afforded. In Carter v. Canada, the Supreme Court was clear on what it considered to be the criteria for access to medical assistance in dying: A competent adult person who clearly consents to the termination of life and has a grievous and irremediable medical condition, including an illness, disease or disability, that causes enduring suffering that is intolerable to the individual in the circumstances of his or her condition.

It was a decision arrived at on the basis of suffering, not the end-of-life or the need to protect populations. If the government had considered the Carter v. Canada decision, any disabled Canadian enduring intolerable suffering would have the right to access.

The government speaks of individual autonomy but hasnt respected it in legislation. The government talks about protecting the vulnerable, yet Audrey Parker of Halifax famously had to use MAiD earlier than she wanted to. Other Canadians have committed suicide after being denied a medically assisted death, including Saskatchwans Cecilia Chmura, Quebecs Jacques Campeau, BCs Adam Ross, and Ontarios Adam Maier-Clayton.

There are those who are waiting in limbo for the government to adopt the amendments like Justine Noel, my common-law partner for whom I am a caretaker. For two years, she has struggled to access a medically assisted death. She would qualify except that her death isnt reasonably foreseeable. In Truchon v. Attorney General, Justice Christine Baudouin called the limitation of a reasonably foreseeable death a flagrant contradiction of the fundamental principles concerning respect for the autonomy of competent people and referred to it multiple times in her 187-page ruling as discriminatory.

And then there are those who have pursued VSED, voluntarily stopping eating and drinking, as Jocelyn Downie has written.

The government has used language like safeguards to rebrand restriction, constitutional violations and suppression of rights.

Is MAiD for mental illness possible?

These amendments arent a cure-all. MAiD is still denied to Canadians whose sole diagnosis is mental illness. What will it take for them to be afforded their Charter rights?

Ken Chan, a 62-year-old Canadian military veteran with depression, committed suicide on the stairs of the Alberta legislature in December 2019, less than an hour after sending emails to federal and provincial health ministers urging them to expand access to medical assistance in dying. Will it take deaths, suicides and evidence of mistreatment before people with mental illness can draw on their Charter rights?

Canada has an opportunity to create legislation that is fair and balanced, something every Canadian deserves. Theres no room for partisan politics. This is a chance to produce legislation that is constitutionally sound.

Photo: Shutterstock, by sasirin pamai.

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How far should the assisted-death law go? Look to the Charter - Policy Options

Commercial growth in Wiltons 2019 grand list was sparked by a new addition and parking garage at ASML at 77 Danbury Road.

Commercial growth in Wiltons 2019 grand list was sparked by a new addition and parking garage at ASML at 77 Danbury Road.

Photo: Erik Trautmann / Hearst Connecticut Media

Commercial growth in Wiltons 2019 grand list was sparked by a new addition and parking garage at ASML at 77 Danbury Road.

Commercial growth in Wiltons 2019 grand list was sparked by a new addition and parking garage at ASML at 77 Danbury Road.

Wilton grand list sees 0.78-percent increase

There was good news on the grand list front for Wilton, following last years decline.

Wiltons 2019 grand list has increased by 0.78 percent. It stands at $4.285 billion, up from $4.251 billion in 2018, a difference of $33,328,535.

The grand list decreased 2.8 percent last year, when properties faced revaluation.

First Selectwoman Lynne Vanderslice attributed the 2019 grand list increase to commercial growth and inclusion of a few new residential houses and permitted remodeling/additions.

Commercial growth included a new addition and parking garage at ASML at 77 Danbury Road, and completion of Sunrise of Wilton, a new assisted-living facility at 211 Danbury Road.

Nearby, New Canaans grand list increased by 0.74 percent, similar to Wiltons, Ridgefields grand list increased by nearly 1 percent and in Darien the increase was 0.96 percent. Westons grand list increased by just 0.1 percent.

The grand list represents the assessed value (70 percent of market value) of all property real estate, personal property and motor vehicles in Wilton from Oct. 1, 2017 through Oct. 1, 2018. It is one of the tools the Board of Finance will use in figuring the mill rate for fiscal year 2020-21.

Wiltons 0.78-percent grand list increase comes from commercial and residential real estate values, which were up 0.77 percent; personal property which was up 1.58 percent; and a 0.24-percent increase in motor vehicle values.

The top 10 Wilton taxpayers on the 2019 grand list are:

1. CT Light & Power Company, assessed at $102,045,220.

2. Teachers Insurance & Annuity Assoc., assessed at $63,600,110.

3. ASML US LLC, assessed at $59,957,590.

4. Avalonbay Communities, Inc., assessed at $52,524,280.

5. Wilton Campus 1691 LLC, assessed at $29,022,980.

6. Wilton 50 LLC, assessed at $19,896,610.

7. Wilton 40 LLC, assessed at $18,485,740.

8. Wilton River Park 1688 LLC, assessed at $16,791,460.

9. Wilton Retirement Housing LLC, assessed at $16,708,260.

10. Sunrise of Wilton Prop Co LLC, assessed at $15,564,270.

Due to higher assessments for renovations and improvements, ASML moved from fourth to third on the list. And Sunrise of Wilton moved into the top 10, displacing I Park Norwalk II LLC.

pgay@wiltonbulletin.com

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Wilton grand list sees 0.78-percent increase - The Wilton Bulletin

Western Loudoun's signature greenery and quaint mid-century architecture collide on this five-plus-acre Bluemont property, which just entered the market for $989,000.

"The environment on the property is just so beautiful and peaceful," listing agent Melissa Donnelly told the Times-Mirror. "The two relaxing porches, one on the side and one on the back, make this the perfect spot to enjoy all of the peacefulness and wilderness that the mountain has to offer."

While at no lack for connection to nature, the 4,284-square-foot, three-bedroom home boasts plenty of visual and environmental appeal on its own. The contemporary spirit of this 1955 construction remains steady, even after having undergone more than $350,000 in renovations in the past two years.

These "personal touches," as Donnelly calls them, are evident from the moment one approaches the front door, itself a custom addition. Several recent additions can be found in the kitchen, its backsplash comprised of tiles handmade by a local artisan, a new, stainless-steel range hood hovering above the open-flame stovetop. White cabinetry, top-tier appliances and a massive, hardwood-topped center island combine to make a paradisaical playground for the chef in the family not to mention the massive walk-in pantry and the wine storage room at the other end of the home.

With an open-concept design that seamlessly connects the kitchen, dining area, family room and recreation room, the entire main floor is "very family-friendly," per Donnelly. "You have people playing pool in one room and hanging out, other people could be by the fireplace. It's great for entertaining," she said. Further, those wishing to get some exercise while unexposed to the elements can use the home gym, which was just finished last year.

The expansive master bedroom has its own fireplace and enjoys the same rustic hardwood flooring that runs throughout the main living area. The attached bathroom is nothing short of regal: Its heated floors are covered with honed marble and a large, mosaic-style medallion; the footed tub and aromatherapy steam shower afford the owners maximum relaxation. Additional living quarters and an opportunity for steady income can be found in the small cottage on the other end of the property, which has its own single-car garage.

For more information on this listing, contact Donnelly at 703-727-1124 or at melissadonnelly@premieragent.com.

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Home of the Week: 18368 Blueridge Mountain Road, Bluemont - Loudoun Times-Mirror

Concerned that the southern part of their city could be overloaded with apartments, DeBarys leaders have put a temporary halt on new multifamily housing projects around the citys SunRail station.

The City Council Feb. 19 unanimously approved a moratorium on new apartment-only projects in the transit-oriented development district, near the SunRail depot.

Our vision for that area is mixed-use, City Manager Carmen Rosamonda said. The commercial corridor could be eaten up with apartments.

Rosamonda added commercial development will be needed for a growing population.

For at least the next seven months, proposals for single-use multi-family housing, with no retail or office additions in the TOD will be on hold, while planners consider new standards and regulations for development and build-out in the district.

The vision of the community is [that] this would be mixed-use, Mayor Karen Chasez said. This is the sentiment of the community ... the sense that we have to get this right. ... I do think a pause is the right thing.

The moratorium will be in effect until Sept. 25, unless the council lifts it sooner.

The ordinance allows the City Council to terminate it earlier, City Attorney Kurt Ardaman said. You have that authority.

City leaders are aiming to ensure there is a balance and blend of other types of development in what is supposed to be a vibrant village or downtown-type center with events that will draw patrons from a wide area.

The moratorium is important so that we can have smart growth, Council Member Patricia Stevenson said.

Rosamonda added DeBary needs retail stores and offices to provide goods and services for those living in the city now and in the future.

Build it right the first time, he said, so that the downtown center will become a destination.

In a report from city planning staff given to council members, city staff put a fine point on the problem.

Most contact [city] staff is having from potential developers is for apartments only, the summary reads. Single use developers are more prevalent, and therefore more likely to approach DeBary Staff. However, mixed-use developers, while less frequent, do exist and may be a more appropriate fit in this area.

The report went on to say that, if left unchecked, residential-only development could choke out commercial and mixed-use development around the station.

Currently, one apartment complex, Integra 289, is now under construction in the TOD area, but city officials say there is interest in more multifamily development within the district.

Just before the council enacted the moratorium, the city received a proposal to build an apartment complex on the site of Clayton & Sons Garage, an auto salvage business at 721 S. Charles Richard Beall Blvd., DeBarys name for its segment of U.S. Highway 17-92.

Theres no appetite for commercial on this site at all, developer Lara Swanson told the council, in defense of more housing as necessary for future retail development. Commercial follows rooftops; there are not enough rooftops.

Swanson noted Clayton & Sons 14-acre parcel is a brownfield, whose soil is likely contaminated by automotive chemicals that would have to be cleaned and treated before any redevelopment could occur.

The TOD area encompasses about 200 acres, mostly privately owned, that leaders see as the future core of DeBary. DeBary, the TOD districts proponents say, will draw visitors and businesses if the area is developed to its full potential.

As matters now stand, Rosamonda said, city planners say as many as 3,825 homes both single-family and apartments may be built in and adjacent to the TOD district.

That number includes homes to be built in The Junction, a mixed-use project set to be developed on 64 acres owned by Steve Costa on the southeast corner of U.S. Highway 17-92 and Dirksen Drive.

In addition, there may be as many as 4,000 other homes within a 2-mile radius north of the TOD in the near future. That number includes some existing homes, Rosamonda said.

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DeBary calls timeout on apartments on city's south end - The West Volusia Beacon